


Sword and Circle II:  Relative Eternity

by beccaelizabeth



Series: Sword and Circle [2]
Category: Highlander: The Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 1998-02-27
Updated: 1998-02-27
Packaged: 2017-10-06 06:42:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beccaelizabeth/pseuds/beccaelizabeth
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An amulet very precious to Richie is stolen.   Viv helps him get it back.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sword and Circle II:  Relative Eternity

**Author's Note:**

> Uses elements of AC's fanfic 'verse, with permission and thanks.  
> If you don't know the 'verse you find things out along with Viv.

It had been a little more than a month since MacLeod had agreed to take Viv on as a student. He was still a little uneasy about her, but things had settled into a routine. Viv would show up first thing in the morning and hang around juggling her throwing knives until someone let her in. Then she would practice for an hour or two before disappearing until the late evening, when she returned for another couple of hours of sword work. Sometimes when MacLeod was out she would show Rich some judo moves, and though she kept saying she wasn't much of a teacher she only had to throw or pin him the same way a couple of dozen times before he got the hang of it.

This evening was another such 'lesson'. Richard kept reminding himself that she was a black belt, with far more practice than him, but still it was embarrassing to be knocked down so regularly by a girl weaker and smaller than he was. Standing ready yet again this time he was sure he had it. This time he would get her for once. This time- he would find himself flat on his back with the breath knocked out of him and Viv holding him down yet AGAIN.

"Okay, so maybe I need a little more practice at that one." Rich admitted.

Viv grinned. Or maybe it was a smirk. "Anytime, Ryan. Happy to help." Yup, definitely smirking.

She started to get up but was brought up short almost immediately as her necklace and his amulet tangled together.

"Damn, sorry." Viv muttered, trying awkwardly to untangle them whilst being unable to move more than a few inches away from him. Then she gave up on that approach and he felt her press against him while she used her hands to unclasp her necklace.

//Of course there are certain compensations with this particular teacher...// Richie thought privately as he watched her sit up and put her shirt back in order. Even in a judo jacket her figure was really something. He sat up, unwound her pendant from his red carnelian circle underscored by a bar, then handed hers back to her.

"I should know better, I guess." Viv apologised. "I just felt the need for a little independence boost today."

"Is that why you wear it?" Rich asked.

Viv held it up and let it dangle through her fingers. The simple black cord supported a silver figure, a seated cat seen in profile. "Bast, Cat Goddess of the Egyptians. An amulet to be worn for confidence and independence. I bought it when I left school. The last school I went to was really tight, didn't trust anyone. Made us pay ten pounds deposit on our textbooks and wouldn't give it back until we'd checked them all into the library. Course I worked in the library so I just checked them in and sold them later." She noticed his expression.

"Well, it's the principle of the thing. If they think they can't trust me, well..." she trailed off a bit, embarrassed, and got back to the story. "So the last day of school, which I had already decided was the last day I was ever going to school and A levels be damned, I got the deposit back and went into town to spend it properly. Had meant to buy some Jack Daniels and get properly pissed, but I was walking past this little shop with all crystals and suchlike in the window and this just jumped out at me. I've always liked cats. Had one on my jacket since god knows when, back in primary school anyway. So I thought, independence day for me today, I'll buy that and have more than a hangover to show for it. Now I wear it cos.. well.." She shrugged and walked over to her bag to tuck it in a side pocket.

"Back then I thought I'd got the hang of things, reckoned I could handle anything. Even up until last month I figured no bastard would ever push me around again without me pushing back harder. Then I come in here, and your friend MacLeod gets out that bloody katana and starts taking me apart, twice a day everyday. So I kind of need a little something extra."

This was a problem he could empathise with. Rich got up and walked over to her, went to put a hand on her shoulder, then thought better of it considering what he had seen of her reflexes about that sort of thing. "I wouldn't say he takes you apart. You give nearly as good as you get. You beat him, what, one out of three?"

"Yeah, with fencing foils by those rules. But the Game isn't played by competition rules. My TLF against his katana, one in seven. At best." She said, and sat down.

Rich sat next to her. "That is way better than most people manage. You are good. I remember when I was first immortal, he kept on at me until I thought my arms would drop off, just trying to get me half way able to hold a sword. You are years ahead of where I was."

"Yeah, well, having nutters for parents turned out sort of useful." she changed the subject. "How about you. Who gave you the amulet?"

"What, this? Just an old friend." Rich said, going slightly red. "Ah, why did you think someone gave it to me?"

"Naheh meriu. Eternal beloved." Viv shrugged. "It isn't the sort of thing you buy for yourself."

"You read hieroglyphs?" he asked a bit incredulously. //Does everyone read these except me?//

"Yeah." Viv saw he was uncomfortable and went off into another story instead. "Back in high school, we had this Humanities teacher who was really into getting kids involved in learning, letting them learn at their own pace, stuff like that. So he set these little booklets and as long as you got them all done by the end of term you could do whatever you liked in lessons, if it was vaguely on topic. So the unit they were on when I got there was all about Egypt. Now I'd only just finished the same stuff at the last school I was at, so it took me about two lessons to finish all the work he had set for a term. So he set me to colouring in these cardboard figures he had, soldiers and stuff in chariots and a fortress. Pretty cool, for school. Then I finished them, and I decided to copy out a picture from one of the text books."

"It was a page from the Book of the Dead, and it had columns and columns of little picture writing all up the top. I figured it might be interesting to be able to read it. Got out every book in the library, school and town, and bought a few for myself. I've always liked languages, got a bit of a talent for them, and by the time I'd finished the picture I knew enough to write something in the spare space about our year's rugby captain that would have been pretty embarrassing had anyone translated it again." she grinned. He grinned too, so she risked asking, "Is that for real? I mean, original, like from Egypt when they wrote that way?"

He shrugged and nodded.

"Wow. I guess eternal can really mean it with us lot. Who do you know that's that old? No, let me guess- an old friend."

"It's just kind of a long story." Rich said, looking embarrassed again.

"No problem, it's your life." Viv shrugged and packed her stuff away. "I got to get going. See you tomorrow?" she asked, pulling on her trainers and putting on her sword belt.

"Yeah, I'll see you. You know you shouldn't just carry that around like that. You could get arrested or something."

"For what, carrying a concealed weapon? Trust me, TLF and me have been most of the way around Europe and both Americas together. He's stopped more trouble than he's started." She patted her sword fondly, then picked up her bag and headed for the door. "Later." She waved over her shoulder and left.

*********************************************************************

They always met in this alley, half way down where it was darkest and where the gap between the buildings and the fire escapes gave them all somewhere to stand and a quick way out of there. Adrian had joined the gang mostly because his best friend had. He himself looked like the before picture in an advertisement for exercise equipment, but his friend Dave could push anybody around and get away with it. At least in school. Out here he was about to discover things could get very messy very quickly.

"I told you to leave them alone. I told you to back off." Miller told Dave menacingly.

"Come on, Miller, they were asking for it." Dave said defensively.

"That is not your decision to make. If we want to be taken seriously we can't go around just roughing up anyone who comes along like school yard bullies."

That got Dave in his pride, and he hadn't learned how to back down yet. "We got to make people know what we can do to them if they don't respect us."

"When you joined us you agreed to do what I said, when I said it."

"Well if you're going to act like a pansy maybe I made a mistake." Dave said.

There was a deathly hush as everyone but Dave realised he may well have just made the last mistake of his life.

"A pansy." Miller said quietly, looking away for a moment. Then he balled up his fist and swung hard, catching Dave in the gut.

If he'd have just stood there and took it Dave might have lived to see another sunrise but as it was his reflexes betrayed him and he hit back almost before he realised what was happening. Dave was strong and landed a few punches that knocked the other man back, but Miller fought dirtier. Before anyone could react to what was going on, there was a muffled crump, and Dave stood there bent over in shock while Miller pulled his gun away from what was left of the kid's gut. Then he fell. Dead.

Everyone else stood there looking at one of their own folded up and bleeding on the concrete.

Which was a real bad time for Richie to get there taking a shortcut.

As soon as he came into view Miller, still hyped, whirled his gun round and shot him, and the first Richie knew of the incident was when he hit the ground dead.

"Shit. Oh, shit man. This is bad, this is very very bad." someone said.

"Get real. This is just what we needed. Adrian, get that guy's wallet. Shove it in Dave's pocket."

Adrian stood there frozen for a moment, then reluctantly moved towards the young redhead's corpse. The guy didn't look much older than they were. And Dave, he was only a month older... he hesitated a moment, bent over the body. Miller had been watching for this, and stepped up behind him with a gun.

"Come on kid, you saw what happened. Dave crossed the line. Now we got to make it look like these two got each other."

Adrian bit his lip, then started searching the guy's pockets for his wallet, trying to avoid the blood. Some pendant fell out the top of his shirt as he patted the pockets, but he ignored it as he found what he was looking for.

Then, just as he was pulling it out, the guy took a rasping breath.

"Shit!" Adrian and Miller yelled in unison, and jumped back. Then Miller emptied the rest of his clip into the guy, the body jerking grotesquely as each shot hit it. When he stopped the poor guy didn't have much of a chest left.

"Shit. That guy was dead, man. How the hell did he..."

"Don't talk crazy, kid. He just wasn't dead the first time. Come on, we gotta get out of here."

Miller turned and ran, and the others followed him. But Adrian stood staring at the body, at the symbol he wore around his neck.

"Eternal Life..." he whispered, and hopes flashed through his mind about something he had thought hopeless. Quickly he bent and untied the amulet, tucked it in his pocket securely. "Sorry. Guess you wont get up this time." he muttered, then turned and ran after his mates.

*********************************************************************

When Viv got to the dojo around sunrise the next morning Richie was there already, talking to Mac and very upset. When Viv got a look at the state of his clothes she thought she could guess why.

"Bloody hell. What happened to you?" she asked him.

"I got shot to shit, all right? I don't even know who by. Mortals, anyway. I woke up next to a dead kid with my wallet on him." Rich replied.

"With the money in it? That is weird. Most times you get mugged they take something." Viv observed.

"Oh, they took something all right." Rich said and if she didn't know better she would think he was trying not to cry.

Something else about his appearance finally clicked. "The amulet." she stated. "Gods I'm sorry Rich. Did it mean a lot to you?"

"You could say that." he said, sitting down heavily and avoiding looking at her.

"Rich... We'll get it back. I'll call the police." Mac said.

"The police, oh great idea. Like they are going to find it." Rich said sourly.

"Plus I imagine it would be a bit hard to explain. 'Well, officer, I was just minding my own business when someone killed me and nicked this Egyptian antiquity I happened to be wearing because a mate gave it me'. Yeah, right. They're bad enough when you try and explain you're climbing the town Christmas tree cos someone chucked your purse up there." Viv agreed, then thought this sounded rather unhelpful. She looked at Rich sitting there dejected and came to a decision. "Where did this happen then?" she asked, and when he told her she said "Tell you what, I might just be able to help."

"You?" Mac asked.

She avoided looking at him. "Yeah, well... friends of friends, you know? No promises but... if anyone can dig anything up, friend of mine probably knows them."

"And what are they doing knowing people that know about shootings?" Mac asked in his best judgmental voice.

"Can I use your phone?" Viv asked, and just looked at him steadily until he waved he stepped aside and waved at the office. Viv went in, dumped the bag, and pulled out a battered filofax. "Not that I bought this for myself, I'm no yuppie, but it comes in handy sometimes..." she muttered absently to Mac whilst flipping through pages. He just stood there with his arms crossed, obviously with every intention of listening to whatever she would say on the phone. Viv tried to pay no attention to him. A bit difficult with that particular stare. She tried to get thoughts of quite how sharp his katana was out of her mind.

She found the page she wanted, picked up the phone then dialled.

"Hi, M? It's Viv. Yeah, I know. Sorry. Okay, I'll make it up to you.. no not that way. Anyway, listen. Friend of mine had a bit of a problem today.. got mugged. Yeah, a good friend. No, not yet anyway. We just want the amulet back. Yeah, what got nicked. Its this pendant thing, red, a circle on a bar. Ha ha, yeah funny." sarcasm "No. It's got an inscription, if you want that. Hieroglyphs." sigh "Little pictures that mean something. Like from Egypt? Yeah, them. No? Didn't think so. Yeah... There was some kid there when he woke up,.. shot dead. No, no ones talked to the police yet. I know. Yeah, it was at.." and gave the location. She listened a moment more, then said "Thanks hun, appreciate it. Tell me tonight? No, on second thoughts, might not be time.. Here, Mac, can I give this number? Yeah?" MacLeod nodded. She read it out. "Yup. I'll be here.. all day I guess. No he's... M, come off it. Tonight, okay? I'll see you." She hung up.

She looked up at MacLeod, who was still staring at her. She stared back.

"M?" he asked.

"They'll get back to me." She told him, refusing to volunteer anything else.

He glared a moment more, then shrugged and went back out to Richie.

Viv scribbled a note in her book, then put it away again, and went out to get warmed up for her morning workout.

MacLeod got out the practice swords, and Viv could tell it was going to be an uncomfortable morning. Richie refused to go home while there might be news, so he used Mac's shower and borrowed some of his clothes.

A couple of hours later when the dojo was just opening Viv, her arms feeling like putty, called a halt.

"Mac, no more for today. Alright?"

"You told your friend you'd be here all day." he pointed out.

"Yeah, but I've gotta get some sleep or I'll be wasted for work tonight. Could I crash in the office?" she asked.

He considered for a moment. "No, but you can use the couch upstairs."

"Yeah? Great."

Up in Mac's place Viv had a look around while Mac went to get out some blankets for her.

"So, this is where you live, huh? It's a whole other side of you. Do you like antiques or did you just not buy anything new for a few hundred years?" She asked with a grin.

"Sometimes I sell antiques. I appreciate things that are well made."

"Yeah, I got an appreciation for the well built myself." Viv observed, watching him bend over to get out the blankets. He turned around and caught her at it. She just smirked. He was not amused. He threw the covers to her.

"Here. You can use the shower if you like. I'll be downstairs. I'll call you if your friend calls."

Viv took the covers and thanked him, then got some stripy pyjamas and a towel out of her bag and went into the bathroom to get ready for bed.

Later in the day she woke grabbing her sword as she felt someone coming, then relaxed as she realised it was Richie.

"Go back to sleep, I'm just getting some rest." He said, and tumbled into Mac's bed. Viv was more than happy to comply.

*********************************************************************

By that evening Viv's mysterious friend still hadn't replied. Since she had been up so 'late' that morning she didn't wake up again until Mac came up after closing the dojo.

"No one call?" Viv asked.

"Not for you. You sure this friend of yours is reliable?"

"He's family, if he isn't reliable Great Aunt Ethel will have words. And no one wants that." Viv said sleepily.

She looked around. Richie was still asleep in Mac's bed, hardly stirring when Mac came in. //Must be more used to sleeping in company.// Viv thought. //Course, looking like that he would be.// He looked rather cute lying there asleep.

She got up and got ready for her 'day'. By the time she got out of the bathroom Richie was awake, and eating. Viv had pulled on a vest and shorts, and was wearing an overall with the top half hanging down behind her. She sat on the couch and got some Doc Martens out of her bag.

"Viv, is there anything you don't pack?" Richie asked, grinning.

"I got stuff for work, rest and play. Cos you never know." Viv answered, and thought somewhat wistfully of a certain lacy garment that fitted in a side pocket, and wearing it for present company. Either of them.

"So when will we hear from this mysterious contact of yours?" MacLeod asked her.

"Oh, I'll see him at work. If there's anything urgent I'll call you right away, no worries. If not - Rich, how about I meet you at lunch time. That's about eleven o'clock for you strange diurnal creatures. there's this all night diner we usually go to," Viv said, scribbling down the address. "I'll see if M wants to talk to you, or if not I'll just pass on the message."

"We'll be there." MacLeod said, taking the paper.

"I don't recall inviting you." Viv said, then realised that sounded a little too snippy. "Look, Mac, M doesn't like just anyone turning up near work. He gets a bit skittish if people he doesn't know figure out how much he knows. And you're sort of intimidating at the best of times." he looked less than convinced. "You still worried about his neck?" waving in Richie's direction. "If I wanted to do you in I could have done it by now. He's a mate, I'll look out for him like he was one of ours."

Richie looked mildly puzzled, then a little annoyed. "Mac, you haven't been thinking she would.." Mac obviously had. "Viv could have taken my head a couple of dozen times by now. I trust her, okay? Viv, I'll be there."

Richie took the paper from MacLeod's hand and shoved it in a back pocket. Viv nodded, then got up, put on her sword, shoved pyjamas and yesterdays clothes away and left.

Once she was gone Rich decided it was time to have a few words with Mac.

"Mac, what is your problem with Vivianne? Exactly what has she done that put her on your bad side?"

MacLeod sighed and tried to think of a way to say this that wouldn't sound like he was being paranoid. "It's nothing specific that she's done, it's more.. things she hasn't done. Like do you know where she lives? Or where she works?"

"She fixes cars. And you didn't exactly invite her up here in a hurry, why should she ask you back to her place? Or is that the thing she hasn't done that's got you in a bad mood? Not every girl in the world wants to jump into bed with you MacLeod."

"Rich, don't be stupid. I don't think of her like that."

"Yeah, right. Now I'm stupid." Rich paused to try and stop the argument going completely ballistic, then thought of something. "You think she's like Felicia, don't you? Or like Kristin. Another immortal woman seems to like Richie, oh well that just proves she's after his head. I guess it's just an alien thought to you that she might just like me."

"Rich, I didn't mean it like that. Just when she came in here and we didn't know anything about her, she starts off practically asking for a duel.."

"Finding somewhere she could fence!"

"..and then she starts making nice with you, I didn't know what to think. So I just had a quiet word.."

"You asked her if she was after my head? Jesus, Mac, why not just get Joe to check out all my dates? Set a detective on them! Or maybe you could just trust me to look after myself."

"I do trust you. It's just.. Rich, so many times I've nearly lost you." Mac gulped and took a breath. "Anyway, it's a good thing I did ask her. That was when I found out she didn't know about the Game. I said I'd teach her, Rich, it's not like I sent her away to figure it out on her own."

"Oh, yeah, and you had the best of motives. You sure it wasn't just to keep an eye on her? Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer."

"Let's face it, Rich. There's a lot about her that should make us worry. Like this shooting business, how is she going to find out more about that? If she can solve it why doesn't she go to the police?"

"Maybe to keep our little secret quiet. God knows we don't go telling the police about all the murders we could solve."

"That's different."

"How is it different Mac?" sigh. Trying to be calm. "Look, Mac, you think she's older than she says? We've talked about stuff. High school, films, music, all that sort of stuff. She sounds about my age to me. And I trust her. She's just trying to help, Mac, give her a break."

"Maybe. Just.. watch your head, okay?"

"Hey, always." Rich grinned. He finished his food then went down to the dojo to wait for a call.

*********************************************************************

Eleven p.m. turned up with no call from Viv, so Rich went to the diner she had told him about. He found her sitting in the back corner in now rather oily overalls next to a man dressed the same way, grinning and joking around.

"Hey, Rich, over here!" she waved in case he hadn't seen them. He walked over to the table. "Rich, meet Marcus, M to his friends. He's, what was it, second cousin three times removed or third two times?"

"I can never get it straight. Hi Rich, can I call you that? Call me M. Marcus is my father, you know?" the guy said, holding out a surprisingly clean hand, with a friendly grin on his face. "Don't worry, I'm clean. You don't work on cars that cost more than your house without getting real good at keeping your hands clean." he looked at Viv while he said that and Viv laughed at what seemed to be an in joke as Rich shook the hand and sat down.

"M, this is the friend I told you about, the one that got mugged."

"Oh yeah? Looking pretty healthy compared to what I heard about." Marcus said.

"Yeah, well, I've got a headache bigger than my head, you know?" Rich lied and rubbed the back of his head a bit.

"Been there. Anyway, we were just negotiating what Viv owes me for all this. I was up half the day about this one."

"M, don't tease. Family. Next time I can do something for you you only got to name it, you know that."

"Yeah, but you know what I want and you're saving it all for this MacLeod person."

"Marcus! Rich, just tell him I'm not shagging Mac. He won't believe me."

"You stayed the day with the guy, what am I supposed to think?"

"Hey, she was on the sofa the whole time. I had the bed. Mac was working anyhow." Rich said, feeling a little left out of what was obviously a close friendship.

"Oh, so she slept with you? I got to warn you about the women in this family. Run us lot ragged they do."

"You only say that cos you're one of Ethel's lot."

"Yeah, I guess Emily isn't so bad. But it was you I was thinking of."

"Ooh, you. Just get on with it, if we're going to sort this tonight we've got to get a shift on."

Marcus went serious and got out a fairly illegible note pad. "Okay. But are you sure you don't want me to get some of the boys round to help? These guys might be small time but guns are always serious business."

"You worry too much. I'm a grown girl, I can look after myself."

"Half grown more like." Marcus quipped back reflexively. "But if you insist... Guy in the alley was a high school bully name of Dave. Nobody special. But the alley was where the gang he was part of usually hang out. Not a good neighbourhood." he looked up at Rich.

"Yeah, I know. Just in too much of a hurry, I guess. Usually I can take care of myself too." Rich shrugged.

Marcus continued. "I hear there was some sort of disagreement with him and Miller, the guy in charge. Mean bastard, thinks with his fists on a good day. Seems like last night he thought with his gun. You're lucky to be alive, if you walked into that." watching Rich's reaction. Rich looked uncomfortable and rubbed his head again. Marcus copied a bit of his notes out carefully, in block capitals that were actually legible. "I got his address, but he isn't there right now. Didn't go far though. Friend found him in a motel across town, room number and everything right here." He tore off the note and handed it to Viv. "I assume you'll be wanting to take care of it from here?" he asked here, concern all over his face.

"My friend, my problem. I'll be okay, Marcus, I always am." she reassured him. "Look, now seems like a pretty good time to do this. I'll get changed and we'll head over there." she looked at Richie to check and he nodded agreement. "If I'm late back, just cover for me, okay? Don't go sending out the cavalry. Boss would have a fit."

"And if anything happened to you about a million cousins, aunts, uncles and great aunts would have a fit, and I'd never hear the end of it. Just be careful, okay?"

"You know it." she grinned, and got her bag out from under the table then headed for the ladies room to change. Rich noticed for once she wasn't actually wearing her sword, but he knew that bag of hers was never far away from her. She was probably just making some attempt to look respectable for work.

Marcus was watching him watching her. His face had gone very serious now Viv was out of view.

"Look... I don't know much about you. Viv keeps her life on a need to know basis. But she trusts you, so I guess that's good enough for me. Aren't many friends she would call in a family favour for. But I want you to know, if anything happens to her.. we know where you are. And there are a lot of us, just in case you were thinking you could take me. Look after her." He was dead serious, and Richard replied the same way.

"We care about her too, Mac and me. We're sort of responsible for her right now. We won't let anything happen to her."

"Damn right you're responsible." Marcus agreed, then shut up as Viv returned, in leather jacket, black jeans and sneakers, buckling on her sword belt. "Viv, I wish you wouldn't carry that thing around." he complained, almost light hearted.

"Hey, he's the best friend a girl could have. Vivianne and The Light Fantastic together can deal with anything. Come on, Ryan, we'll take your bike if that's okay."

"Sure." he agreed and they left together, a meaningful stare from Marcus following them.

"So how much did you tell him?" Richie asked as he got on the bike.

"About Immortals? Nada. News like that would go all the way up to the great greats, and they would tell everyone else. Suddenly you've got a few thousand people with all their different agendas who know all about Immortals. M's okay, but a lot of my lot... well, they're family, but that don't mean you can trust them. To guard your back or help you out of a fix, but not with everything." Viv replied, climbing up behind him and holding on around his waist, obviously used to riding that way.

Richie was rather relieved. The thought of every Impson around the world knowing to take his head if anything happened to Viv was less than appealing.

 

*********************************************************************

The motel was cheap and tacky, and once they found the right room Viv had no trouble picking the lock. A bent paper clip would have done it.

Miller was sprawled on the bed, empty beer cans scattered all over the floor, his gun in plain sight on a chest of drawers four feet away from them. He just kept snoring as Viv walked up to him, got out some handcuffs, and snapped them on. Richie banished brief speculations as to why she might carry them and concentrated on the task at hand, searching the room while she slapped the guy in the face until he woke up. The amulet wasn't anywhere.

"Whu- what?! Hey- hey bitch, stop that!" Miller spluttered awake, and lunged to hit Viv, losing his balance and almost falling off the bed when he found his hands cuffed together. Viv caught hold of him and shoved him back against the wall.

"Keep your voice down and answer our questions and you just might get out of this alive." Viv said quite calmly.

Miller, obviously not big on brains, kept struggling, trying to get his hands free. "I'm not afraid of you, bitch."

"Yeah? How about me." Rich hissed quietly, steeping into his field of vision.

Miller went dead white and shrunk back against the wall. "No way... no way... can't be you, I.. I.."

"Killed me? I'm back. Where is it." Rich asked, leaning forwards menacingly.

"I don't know what you.."

"Where is it! The amulet! The one you stole from me!"

Miller tried to back right through the wall. "I don't know! I didn't take anything! I swear, don't kill me, please don't kill me."

"You stole it, and I want it back! Where did you put it! Did you sell it to someone? Who!" Rich didn't raise his voice too much but it was obvious he was way beyond annoyed. He leaned in right in Miller's face.

Miller wet himself. Viv tried not to laugh. "Adrian! That little prick, he was who took it. He was right near you the whole time! I swear, it wasn't me, it was him!"

"Adrian?" Viv asked softly.

"Yeah, Adrian Jessop, little shoplifter gets the beer for us. He lives on.. ah.. he lives on.."

"Tell me!" Rich grabbed the front of his shirt.

Miller screamed and babbled an address, which Viv wrote down quickly. She took her cuffs back. He didn't try and run, just pressed into the wall and stared at Richie, squeaking the Lord's prayer over and over.

"You better be right." Richard told him, and left.

Viv lingered a moment. "You know, if you're wrong, he'll be back. Maybe you ought to think about the defensible qualities of a nice quiet jail cell." she said helpfully, grinning. Miller didn't seem to hear her, but the moment she was out the door he dived for the phone.

"Oh man, that was too cool." Viv said, grinning ear to ear. "That is usually so much harder to do. But I guess if a pissed off zombie came and woke me up I'd probably tell him anything he wanted to know."

"Yeah, well, I was kinda hoping my amulet would be there." Rich said, not happy, getting back on his bike and holding out his hand for the next address.

"Hey, I'm sorry. But we'll find it, don't worry." Viv reassured him, and handed it over, then climbed on.

"I hope so." He sighed, read the note, and put on his helmet.

*********************************************************************

The house the note led to was in a quiet neighbourhood, a little respectable place surrounded by middle class homes. They parked the bike down the end of the block and walked up to it quietly, getting a look around. Viv peeked quickly into the front windows, but the only one with any light in it was down the side upstairs. She went around to the front door and was about to pick the lock again when she noticed the symbol painted on he door frame.

"Bother." she said, stepping back.

"What? There an alarm or something?" Rich asked.

Viv pointed to the pentacle in the top corner of the frame. "Nope, but the owners one of mine. I can't just go breaking into a sister's house like this. We get enough shit from the Christians without dishing it out to each other."

"What, you're into black magic?" Richie asked, disbelieving.

"No." Viv said, annoyed. "That's a protective pentacle, point up. Means it's probably another witch lives here, another priestess of the goddess like me. Nothing to do with devils or demons." she considered a minute. "Oh well. If stealth fails, try boldness." she decided and without checking with Richie she walked up to the door and knocked.

"Viv! If he runs.." Rich said, stepping up next to her and grabbing the door handle. It turned easily, the door left unlocked. They stood there a moment in surprise as the door swung open.

"Well.. I sure hope She meant that as a sign, cos that's the way I'm going to take it." Viv said, with a quick glance at the moon above them. Then she stepped inside cautiously and took a look around, Rich behind her.

The hall and stairs were full of book shelves, and the walls above and behind them were covered in beautiful complicated knotwork designs and flowers and symbols. The book shelves were full of works like 'The Magic in Stones', 'Egyptian Magic' and 'The power of amulets'. Up the top of the stairs the one light spilled out of a half open door.

"Well, let's go see..." Viv half whispered, and started stealthily climbing the stairs.

*********************************************************************

Adrian sat next to his mother's bed, his face stinging from the salt of tears that had run out hours ago. Why hadn't it worked? The doctors, the hospital, they had given up on her months ago. Said she only had days to live, every time they went there, until they stopped bothering to go and mom just spent all her time sat up here, taking the pills that never worked well enough, in so much pain that sometimes, guiltily, he almost wanted her to die just so it would be over. All her friends had stopped coming, just couldn't bear to see her that way. They said it would take a miracle.

Well he had seen a miracle.

He found it for her, just when they needed it like she always said they would. He took it and he brought it back here and he gave it to her just in time. Just before she died. She'd just looked down at it and smiled and died.

Eternal life. That guy in the alley, he proved it. It worked, he'd seen it work. So why wasn't it working?

He heard the knock downstairs like it was something from another world. He just sat there watching her, waiting for her to take another breath, just draw in a breath and sit up and be well again like before all of this. But it didn't happen.

From the corner of his eye he saw someone appear in the doorway. He didn't look round. What did it matter?

She paused there a long moment, then stepped into the room. Came over and sat in the other chair, just quiet and ..respectful or something. Like she cared.

Someone else came in, a guy he felt through his shock he really ought to recognise. He saw the amulet and looked ready to get really angry, then noticed the new wearer wasn't breathing and went really quiet. The amulet. Oh yeah, that guy.

"Why doesn't it work?" Adrian asked quietly, hoarse after all that time crying, and sounding really detatched and distant.

The other two were quiet for a moment, then the woman reached over and touched the back of his hand where he was holding his mom's hand.

"The magic wasn't in the stone, love. Never is. Magic is in people." she said quietly.

He started crying again. He'd thought he was all out of tears.

"So he gets to live forever and she just dies all alone? Damn it, it's not fair. It shouldn't work like that. She should come back..." he sobbed.

"I guess it doesn't seem fair. Never does. I'm sorry." she said, just holding on to their hands. Not yelling or angry or anything. "I know it's hard, being left here."

"She didn't leave me! She died! She wouldn't leave me!" Adrian gulped through the tears.

"I know, I know. I'm sure she hung on as long as she could. Just.. sometimes wanting to stay isn't enough."

"It doesn't make sense. I thought... the amulet... eternal life.. it made so much sense. I thought she'd come back. I thought I'd found what she needed. She always said, if you need something enough, you always get what you need."

"You do, love. Faith manages. But what you need and what you want aren't always the same thing. Eternal life... everyone's got it, one way or the other."

"Could have fooled me." he sobbed bitterly.

She took her hand away, and traced the shape of the amulet. "Wheel and road love. Wheel and road. The wheel turns, we go along the road of life. Every turn ends sooner or later, but the wheel turns again and the road goes on. Her turn was over for a time. Right now, she's on a nine month holiday, then she'll be back with the rest of us, slogging along."

"That's bull. She said she'd been Cleopatra and Queen Elizabeth and all sorts like that. Stopped talking to one of her friends who said she'd been those people too. We don't come back. It's just over. you die, you're dead."

"So you've stopped believing huh?"

He nodded viciously, trying to stop crying and wiping his face on his sleeve. "A long time ago."

She smiled sadly. "Looks to me more like you put everything you had into believing."

He looked at her and then started crying even more. She put an arm around his shoulders. He tried to shrug it off, but then he just sat there and cried. "She's gone." he sobbed. "She's just gone. Ashes to ashes, d-dust to dust."

"Back into mother Earth, so she can give us birth again." the woman replied gently. "Which doesn't help us back here, I know."

Adrian just sat there crying, until the tears ran out again. Then he sat for a while looking at his mom. He turned to the woman sat beside him and asked "Who are you anyway?"

She half grinned. "What you need, when you need it love. Just a passing priestess the Lady thought you might need a word with. Are you one of ours?"

"Pagan? Yeah, I guess. Mom called herself a witch, but me.. I dunno. It just seemed so.. I mean if the guys at school found out.."

"Isn't the word that counts, it's the community." She saw his bitter expression at that one. "Not much of that lately? I'm sorry. But if you need a friend.."

"No, that's okay. I can look after myself."

"We all can love, but sometimes it helps to look after each other too." she replied, and sat there for a minute.

Adrian looked at her, then he glanced back at the guy who'd come with her, who was standing near the door looking sort of uncomfortable. He looked around and looked Adrian in the eye, and Adrian looked down shamefaced and blushed. He turned around and reluctantly took the amulet from around his mom's neck.

"I guess you want this back... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken it.. I thought she would.. but she wouldn't want it if she knew how I got it. Here." He turned and held it out to the guy. What was the name on the wallet? Ryan?

Ryan reached out and took it, running his fingers over it and holding it like it was very precious. Then he quickly reached up and tied it around his neck again. "Thanks." he said. He picked it up and looked at it a moment, then looked Adrian in the eyes again. "What this means to me... It was a gift. It means.. that love is eternal. Even if you aren't together right then."

Adrian looked back at his mom, and understood. "I guess she was right after all then. What we need, when we need it."

There was quiet for a moment, then the woman stood up. "We better go. Do you need any help with anything?"

"Nah, we've been ready for this for a while. I'll call the funeral home. Then I guess I better call the police, turn myself in."

Viv turned to look at Rich, who nodded and looked at Adrian. "One question.. did you pull the trigger the other night?"

"No. No way. Miller had the gun, Dave was my friend, I wouldn't do something like that."

"So you just stole this." Rich was quiet for a minute, thinking over all the second chances he'd been given. He looked up at Adrian again. "I won't press charges. As long as Miller ends up in jail for what he did, everything's cool with me. And you probably won't have to do anything about that."

Adrian looked at him to check he was serious, then just nodded. "Thanks." he said simply. "I.. won't waste this."

"Then we understand each other." Rich replied, then turned and went back down the stairs.

Viv had been writing something. "I guess it wont be easy from now on, on your own. If you ever need anything... well, here." she passed him the bit of paper with a phone number and her name scribbled on it, then hugged him. "Just remember, faith manages. You'll do okay, kid." Then she left.

Adrian turned and saw his mom lying there, the smile still on her face. He sighed, shoved the paper in his pocket, and picked up the phone.

*********************************************************************

Outside, Rich was waiting on his bike.

"Rich.. thanks. What you said, that was really great. Just right."

"Yeah, well.." he shrugged and looked away, embarrassed again. "You believe all that? What you said to him?"

Viv's turn to shrug. "It's not exactly a question of believing. It's just the way the world works, far as I've seen. The wheel, the lady, that's the way I live. Though you don't necessarily have to mention that to Marcus, him and his lot are so catholic they think protestants have a lot to answer for. You?"

"I don't know. I've just seen so much... I don't know." Rich said thoughtfully. "It's just as good an answer as any I've heard."

Viv grinned and patted his back as she got on the bike. "That's the other way I usually put it. Thee and I will get along just fine."

Rich grinned and started the bike. "So, I guess me and Mac are what you need right now?"

Viv laughed and put her arms around his waist. "Oh yeah, I need you. I need you to get me back to work before I get fired."

"In a hurry huh? Just hang on." Rich grinned wickedly, and left tyre marks as he roared away.

**Author's Note:**

> Old fic is old. Mary Sue could be more Sue. Flaws are known and noted.


End file.
